Karviná high five!: Integrated plan for managing the change process of the Statutory City of Karvina

At first, it sounds simple – let Karvina become a “relaxing city living its own life”. Make people satisfied with the city life, the environment, the services and their jobs. Let´s improve the image of Karviná for citizens and tourists.

The city dedicated a huge work to the rest of the country but in the last decades related to the coal mining decline and hard economic restructuring, the city faces to a plenty of economic, social and environmental challenges. People leaves the shrinking city which is not prepared nor adapted to these changes. To slow down the negative trends, or rather to stop them, needs fundamental changes.

Goals

Karvina high five! is an integrated plan starting the process of change, offering future vision of the city and setting up the goals to achieve it:

Ensure quality job opportunities in the city and in the whole district

To slow down the outflow of young people from the city, to reduce the unemployment rate and to offer new attractive jobs in different sectors with economic potential. To encourage entrepreneurship of citizens. The city shall be prepared for the forthcoming decline of coal mining and create the conditions for the transition to a new economic model independ on a single sector.

Improve the life conditions of inhabitants

Together with the population decline, the city shrinks, the number of occupied flats and lands is decreasing. To avoid the growth of the socially excluded sites or the increased costs of public spaces and infrastructure maintain, it is crucial to manage the process soundly and implement the Integrated plan. At the same time, the city shall offer adequate attractive flats corresponding to modern trends.

Improve infrastructure

Fast and safe connection of the city to the region and to the nearby Poland is another important objective. Completing the inner ring road will help to relieve the city centre and to improve the comfort of the inhabitants living closely to the current detour route. The quality school infrastructure with varied and topical education program is the key task for future development. Leisure infrastructure shall not be omitted either. It is necessary to enlarge sport opportunities and cultural activities for the citizens.

Initiate positive changes including a change of the city image

The city is notorious as a mining city with poor environment. It is vital to present the city that disposes of numerous parks and leisure opportunities in the nature. An appropriate reclamation of brownfields and revitalisation of unused industrial buildings will encourage the change of image. The achievements shall be communicated within and outside the city. More intensive cooperation with Polish partners can contribute to the development of the city.

Attract attention, support and financial assistance from the state and the EU to accelerate the change of the city, namely 10 billion CZK of external resources in the next 10 years

The city shall prepare for the changes. The city budget will presumably decrease due to the reducing population. Therefore, external financial sources are necessary to implement the Plan including the projects. The designed projects must be consistent with the conditions of relevant financial programs but the city must also gain the support to their implementation.

Projects of Change

The Integrated plan consists of 15 interconnected project packets provoking the change. The projects will impact the inhabitants, the environment and the economy. An overview of particular project packets is listed below and described in the section of Projects.